Conventionally, an unfired laminate chip for a laminated ceramic electronic component is manufactured in such a way that a large number of internal electrodes for one laminate chip are printed in a matrix on ceramic green sheets, and the ceramic green sheets are stacked as required, subjected to pressure bonding, and cut into one chip. This method has a need to ensure insulator sections with a certain width on side surfaces (surfaces with no extraction electrodes) of the laminate chip, in relation to the accuracy in stacking position of the ceramic green sheets and the positional accuracy for cutting into the shape of the laminate chip. Therefore, the provision of the insulator sections has problems such as a case of the increased size of the laminate chip and the acquired capacitance decreased because of the decreased area of the internal electrode. In addition, the sections with the internal electrodes printed are increased in thickness by the amount of the internal electrodes. Therefore, the increased number of electrodes stacked produces substantial differences in height between the sections with the internal electrodes printed and the insulator sections. There is also the problem of structural defect generation in the fired laminate chip due to the influence of these differences.
As a method for remedying the problems, for example, the following method for manufacturing a laminated ceramic capacitor has been proposed. More specifically, in this method for manufacturing a laminated ceramic capacitor, a laminate chip is manufactured in such a way that conductive films to serve as internal electrodes are printed in a striped shape onto ceramic green sheets, and the ceramic green sheets are stacked as required, subjected to pressure bonding, and then cut into one laminate chip. Then, in an insulator-section forming device 1 as shown in FIG. 7, on a horizontal metal plate 2, a coating film of a paste 3 for insulator sections is formed with the use of such a solvent that has no ability to dissolve the laminated body, while common ceramic materials are used for the laminate chips. Thereafter, the paste 3 for insulator sections is applied onto side surfaces of laminate chips 5 held by a holding plate 4 to form insulator sections on the laminate chips 5 (see Patent Document 1).
Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. S61-248413